


a mask is a false face

by sweetgoodgraciousangel



Category: M/ajora's M/ask, Original Work
Genre: it's a ma/joras m/ask au, you know whats happening
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-22
Updated: 2018-03-22
Packaged: 2019-04-06 09:39:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14054112
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweetgoodgraciousangel/pseuds/sweetgoodgraciousangel
Summary: Going to the carnival was a mistake and Viola would never forgive herself for letting it get as bad as it did.





	a mask is a false face

Having left Hollow only days before, Viola and Charlotte after long hours of traveling were well nearing their destination of Clock Town, where ultimately they’d made the decision to attend the annual carnival held there this year for simple fun and a manner of stepping out of their comfort zone to experience something new. Viola was reminded of the carnival’s yearly festivities after she’d over heard a few customers of hers making quiet conversation about their plans to organize a trip there for themselves. It’d taken some convincing on Viola’s side to persuade Charlotte into the trip, but she caved in after a while of thinking about it on her own (and Icarus mentioning that they’d want to go as well).

It wasn’t the most dangerous escapade they’d ever ventured out on, but it was long, boring, and overall noisy from their constant bickering and disagreements. The transition from being in the wide fields of Hollow’s visually bland outskirts, to the open part of the unnamed land where there was nothing but miles of greenery and an occasional campfire in the distance, to the very edges of Termina was vastly different to one another. They’d only stopped to rest at the very end of each night so they could rise early the next morning to continue. Termina, from what they’d heard, wasn’t the safest place to be during any time of day, with monsters - from as small as a patch of grass to as big as dragons - always on the hunt.

It was the final push onto the end, just before they reached where they needed to be, and it unfortunately put them just within the Lost Woods. Thankfully, having decidedly traveled on horseback, it cut the time the journey would have taken on foot short. Not only would they be early, they’d still have about three day’s time to truly indulge in the Clock Town pleasantries before the carnival.

The night was at its darkest, and the air was brisk against their skin, making their cheeks and noses tinge with pink.

But what _would_ prolong their arrival was the insistent childishness of Viola’s sister.

“...And the fact that this place is _called_ the Lost Woods isn’t exactly putting me at ease.” Charlotte whined for practically the tenth time that night, making the corner of Viola’s mouth twitch in irritation, tempted to make a reply so discourteous she might have even been ashamed of herself. Charlotte wasn’t one for staying up late, but Viola insisted they not stop and make the rest of the journey on this night so they didn’t have to wait any longer. They were too close to give up, and if they pushed themselves to make it to Clock Town, then they could get a cozy spot at an inn where they could curl up and sleep in a bed rather than outside, on top of a pile of plush objects and thin blankets to keep them warm.

“Quit your griping. I’m tired of listening to it. The town is close by. And it’s just a name, Charlotte. Don’t let it get to you.”

Charlotte rolled her eyes, though didn’t bother to look Viola’s way. Her fingers clutched the reins on her horse a little tighter, tossing a small glimpse at something over her shoulder. “I’m sure we’ve passed that exact same tree about three times now.”

Viola darted her eyes over to where hers had been seconds ago, and chills just barely crept down her spine in agreement, though bit her tongue rather than to speak her thoughts. It was simply just coincidence, _surely_. The both of them were getting too caught up in the scenery, which eventually would blur together if you stared at it for too long in the very dark of night. She chose to drive the worrying notion away, shaking her head as if to shake its nervous lingering effects out of herself entirely. Charlotte was just determined to make this trip harder than it needed to be, and she’d been like that since the start of it.

“You’re being ridiculous. You’ll thank me when we’re not freezing in the cold another night.”

“What is this festival even for again? I’ve never been before.”

Their time apart as siblings when they were younger had proven their experiences were vastly different. Though Viola didn’t entirely like traveling, she liked where it could bring her and the opportunities it allowed her to have, like meet new people, forge friendships, and perhaps if she was luckily try delicious food she hadn’t before. Hollow was a comfortable place, filled with kind and welcoming people that greeted you like you’d known them your entire life, but she had to agree that it was refreshing to step away from the familiar and into something new.

She’d been to the Carnival of Time once in the past, when she was young, and the only thing she could recall were scary startling faces plastered onto the people, bright flashing lights accompanied by loud booming noises, and things moving too quickly to comprehend what was happening. Upon further reading on the subject, it was tradition to wear masks that honor the four protective guardians of the surrounding lands, and to have a fireworks show at approximately midnight.

It scared her so much as a child, cowering in fear at everything going on and refusing to let the scarily masked strangers help her. She can’t remember why she’d been there in the first place. It was some vague memory, but one that she had been far too young to recall fully at her age now.

“A celebration to the Gods who protect them. Everyone who comes to the carnival wears masks in appreciation. Speaking of, we’ll need to find some for all of us.”

Meaning not just her and Charlotte, but also Icarus and Zachary, who were hopefully already patiently waiting in Clock Town for them by now. They had a head start a few days back before them (since Viola had some loose ends to tie with her shop when it came to someone looking after it for her), and all were in an agreement that they would meet up at the center of town in the morning time after their estimated arrival time. The two of them were probably anticipating that they would be arriving soon, but were a little late (due to _someone’s_ whining about wanting to sleep in). They still had about three days time though.

“I just… can’t shake the feeling that we’re being _watched_ .” Charlotte finally said. Her horse Sterling had whined quietly, ruffling her mane as she gently shook her head, as if agreeing with her (the horse was about as stubborn as her anyway). But Viola didn’t sense any sort of discomfort or intrusion on their conversation. In fact, the only thing about these woods that made it _eerie_ was that it was impossible to see the night sky because of the thick of trees above them, and most of the path ahead of them was only visible with the light of the lamp Viola had lit. She knew they were moving forward, but it was almost as if they had no real sense of direction in them. She had no idea how Zachary and Icarus managed to traverse this place all on their own. Hopefully they had made it out…

“You’re determined to find every little thing to nitpick on.”

Charlotte snapped her head toward her, barely startling Sterling in the process with the rough movement.

“You’re seriously just going to write me off like that? I can’t even begin to comprehend how selfish you’re being!”

Viola rolled her eyes. “What I can’t even begin to comprehend is why you can’t just shut your mouth and make it the rest of the way? We’re almost to the back of the town. Just stay quiet for another fifteen minutes and I guarantee we will be there.”

Charlotte was glaring daggers at her. If looks could kill, Viola would have been on the dirt right then. Still, Charlotte shook her head mockingly and laughed.

“I’ll be counting the seconds then.”

Viola wanted to respond, but held her breath instead. There was no sense in catering to the pettiness of her sister. She was as irritable as people could come, especially when something wasn’t going her way, but Viola knew that this was no reason to squabble after all these times they’ve argued. Once her sister had a long good night of sleep without disturbance like these past few days (shaken by simple unrecognizable noises and the general discomfort of sleeping outside), she’d wake up the next morning just fine and in an entirely better mood.

The next few minutes passed in silence, and the only thing to be heard was the rhythmic footsteps of their horses. Nelly and Sterling were as reliable as steeds could come, if not amazingly better. They were brave and not at all intimidated by a challenge to be faced. Strong and fierce horses that never backed down. Charlotte and Viola were always sure they had plenty of rest and supplies for their needs before they asked them to do anything that required expending a lot of energy. They surely did make the trip to Clock Town a lot easier than it would have been on foot.

A stick cracked to the right of them, and to the left there was the faint sound that sounded like bees buzzing around. Viola’s eyes scanned the area only for a moment, drawing Charlotte’s attention at the abrupt turns of her head, but kept her eyes forward after being caught, trying not to let the embarrassment show on her face. She still wasn’t convinced that anything was wrong with this forest, but every so often she kept catching sporadic intervals of different noises like small voices chattering, that strange buzzing, and what sounded a lot like footsteps.

That was when Viola began to get a very bizarre feeling, and she nearly cringed once it crept up on her. It crawled down her spine and back up, as if someone’s eyes other than her sister’s glare was burning into her. She swallowed harshly and tried to ignore it, willing the feeling away by focusing on the visuals in front of her, but she couldn’t seem to shake it off like she had before. She kept glancing side to side, and sometimes very briefly turning her head when Charlotte wasn’t looking.

Something… really did feel weird.

So much for making it there before morning came.

Viola wished she had listened to her sister from the beginning, for seconds later, two fast moving lights darted in front of them. They could have been mistaken as bugs, but they were far too big to be a simple firefly. Viola’s heart skipped a beat, at first trying to keep herself steady, but one of them began swarming in front of Viola’s face, blinding her, and she swatted at it furiously as Nelly began to whine in discontent, stepping backwards and bucking up slightly in distress. Viola held onto her reins tightly with one hand, trying not to lose control, but found herself commanding Nelly to run forward in order to try and get away from whatever was peskily hounding the both of them. She hadn’t even thought of what was happening to Charlotte, but she couldn’t have had the chance then, for something hit her in the back of the head and knocked her off of Nelly with ease.

Everything was quiet, and she didn’t know for how long. She knew she could hear voices chattering with sinister laughter to follow it, and she was trying her best to regain control over her body to drag it awake and figure out what the hell was going on, yet frustratingly enough did not have it in her. Her eyes felt heavy, but her determination to live was stronger than her need to sleep. She’d been struck for the purpose of keeping her out of commission, and whoever was devious enough to cross two witches lost within the woods was as bold as they come. _Especially_ when they were tired and irritated from one another’s arguing.

It was that thought that made her fight for her senses, raising one hand to grip her head that hit the ground frighteningly hard. She opened her eyes, her vision blurry and unable to focus fully, but she could still decently make out the shape of what was going on in front of her.

An imp with an oddly shaped mask on was giggling - a baleful edge to the sound - accompanied by what appeared to be two fairies floating cautiously by his side. She was no expert on body language, but she could sense the uncertainty and unwillingness coming off of the two of them. They were supportive, although unsure of their own morals.

“You two fairies did great! Let’s see what this one has in her bag first. I hope at least _one_ of them has something good on them...”

The imp moved forward, but then seemed to stop and consider the both of them for a second, lifting up the mask as if to examine them closer. She couldn’t make out the details of his face any better due to the light of the lamp being knocked out after her abrupt fall, but the bright colors of the mask were impossible to miss. It was sinister to look at, causing an unwilling chill to reside in her gut. It was like the mask was an entirely separate entity than the boy who wore it.

“Hm? These two… Bah, no matter. It won’t be an issue.”

He stepped over to Charlotte and nudged her back with his foot, and when he received no response, he proceeded to rudely kicked her over with little disregard for her. Viola fought, tried to move, but couldn’t. Her body was unwilling to respond, still in a state of stun from her fall. She could only helplessly watch with heavy eyes as he snatched Charlotte’s bag from her, opening it up carelessly and began to dig through it, tossing things out left and right negligently. She gritted her teeth, ready to fling herself at him and take matters into her own hands and teaching the little thief a lesson he would never forget, but her head dropped back onto the ground with a very soft, unheard thud, her vision swimming and conscious wavering.

He set the bag down, holding something in his hands and staring at it with curiosity. There was a mellifluous whistle, gentle to the ears and soothing to the soul. Viola couldn’t think of what he’d managed to pluck out of her bag at first, but when the musical tone rang out again,  she was almost instantaneously awoken.

Oh god, he wouldn’t _dare_. The ocarina! That was a gift to Charlotte she had given her a long time ago back when they were reunited as siblings. Viola had to go through a couple of hoops and plenty of obstacles to get it, but it’d been worth it when Charlotte thanked her with a genuine smile of happiness. There was no way that the imp was going to think about taking it, right?

“That’s one pretty ocarina! Skull Kid, let me touch it!”

“Don’t even bother, Tael! It’s just an ugly piece of clay anyway. Besides, if it broke, we might have these two after us with a bounty on our heads!”

“Well that’s a ridiculous reason, sis! Why can’t I just have a try at it?”

At that, Viola’s strength returned to her arms. No matter how hard her head pounded, it wasn’t a joke, even if the imp wanted to laugh about his little thieving scheme. By the time she fully rose to her feet, she could at least stand straight without much pain prickling the back of her head. Thankfully, Nelly and Sterling seemed okay, having backed away from the situation after being frightened so fiercely by the mysterious trio. Some of the stuff they’d been carrying was scattered on the ground. Viola spotted her staff laying among the mess, and she clenched her fist, leaned over, and grabbed it with a new fiery passion. Charlotte was beginning to stir from all the noise, groaning slightly from not only being abruptly thrown off her horse but from being kicked over by the imp.

The fairies seemed to notice Viola’s approach, and immediately alerted their friend with high pitched yelps.

The imp turned around, slowly (never run from an angry bear, she supposed), then jumped when he saw Viola with her angry expression. He hid the ocarina behind his back, whistling casually and kicked the tip of his shoe into the dirt. Noticing she wasn’t buying the act, he tensed, beginning to take a step backward as Viola sharpened her glare, then jumped for him.

He flew up into the air with immense ease, surprising her as she stumbled forward and steadied herself, watching him make the descent downward and land directly onto Sterling’s back. The horse bucked, but having been alarmed out of nowhere, she began to run forward out of fear. The imp was clinging onto her neck, being tossed around recklessly with the movement despite the fact she was trying her hardest to get him off. Viola gasped loudly, Charlotte stumbling to stand on her two feet, her attention snapping to the fading horse in the distance.

“Wha - Sterling!”

“He has your ocarina too, Charlotte! Come on, get your stuff, let’s go after him!”

She had little idea of what was going on as her head was still swimming in confusion but chose to listen to Viola’s shouts and hurriedly gathered everything up in her arms and ran towards Nelly, who was cautious but allowed the two familiar people to hop up on her back in a hurry. Viola commanded her to go, and Charlotte clung onto Viola like her life depended on it.

Both of their hearts were pounding. Wild thoughts ran through her head unreasonably about what could happen if they didn’t catch him. Truly, the ocarina wasn’t the biggest loss, but if anything were to happen to Sterling, she’d feel entirely responsible.

If Viola knew this was going to happen, she would have said yes to Charlotte’s whining about wanting to rest a couple hours back and call it quits for the night before they came into the woods. It didn’t matter now though. Dwelling on the past wasn’t going to get them anywhere in their present situation. What did matter is that they needed to get everything that imp stole back so they could deal out the consequences. She’d likely just wrangle the little troublemaker up and turn him over to the guards in Clock Town to be properly dealt with, but she wanted Sterling and her stuff back first.

Nelly galloped as fast as she could withstand, and though Viola didn’t want to push her, she somewhat wished she was faster. She could just barely see Ranger and the imp in the distance, the two fairies following closely behind them. She let out an angry huff but kept her patience the best she could, for the longer she stayed in a calm place the better she would find a way out of this situation for them. Perhaps all it took was a stern talking to for this imp to be cornered and be sorry about what he’d took. At least that was daydreaming, but she’d always shoot to handle things in a reasonable manner before it spiraled out of control.

They passed through a clearing with the remains of a large tree stump landmarking their way before they came bounding through a tunnel. On the other side, the imp was waiting - floating in the air, with a pose all too care free - with the two fairies.

No Sterling in sight though.

Viola halted Nelly, the poor likely worn out horse stopping and allowing the two of them to hop off. Viola would be sure after this was settled that both of the horses got the rest they deserved after this disaster.

The imp considered them with a tilt of his head, sighing loudly as if he were the one annoyed by something.

“What was up with that horse? It didn’t listen to a single thing I told it! And something like that is unnecessary. So I did both of you a favor and just… got rid of it.”

The statement was punctuated by a devious giggle, to which all color drained from Charlotte’s face. Viola eye’s went wide, looking over to her sister, who was visibly trying to craft a response but all her lips could do was tremble and fail. Her shoulders started to shake and her hands gripped onto her staff with new vigorous and _violent_ intent, letting the words sink into her and blind her with anger. Her eyes were already clouding with devastated tears, but she refused to let any of them roll down her cheeks, determined not to let the imp see her cry.

Surely, within the time that they had been chasing him and when they’d just got here, he couldn’t have… killed Sterling, right? There wouldn’t be enough of a chance. But if that were the case, then where _was_ Sterling? What did he do with her? The kid had no blood covering him as evidence, so surely, Sterling was alive _somewhere_.

This was unforgivable, no matter what.

“What a sad face! Are you gonna _cry_ over that? I’m just trying to have fun...”

“You little thief.” Viola spat. “Just who do you think you are? I’d _advise_ you to return our things, tell us what you did to my sister’s horse, and leave us be.”

Venom dripped from her words with her tone, and had Charlotte the ability to say anything in that moment, hers would have been twice as deadly if not fatal. She loved that horse with her entire heart, and to hear this imp had so easily disposed of her without a second thought must have _crushed_ her.

“Hm? You can’t seriously think you’re going to intimidate me! You’re just two random witches with bad attitudes.”

Charlotte finally let the first tear go, and her words were choked when she shouted. “Intimidate you? You must mistake me for someone else, because I fully intended to tear you down!”

Charlotte leapt forward without warning, staff raised, prepared to cast a recklessly powerful spell and send it down onto the trio, but it was as if time slowed itself as the kid’s mask began to glow slightly, shake, and deflect her power without even appearing to do anything significant. Charlotte was held aloft in the air for a few seconds, determined not to give up and give the trio a taste of their own medicine before she visibly lost all strength in her body, yelping loudly as she was sent flying backwards into a tree. The branches shook and rustled with the violent impact, and Viola immediately scrambled to sit by her sister, who truly was out of commission this time.

The kid laughed, loud and proud. The fairies seemed uncertain of his choice of actions, but neither stepped forward to stop him. They seemed truly keen on staying by his side despite the blatant fact that they were questioning his actions every step of the way. Viola glared at him, having dropped her staff when she rushed over to Charlotte out of pure terror.

“You can’t beat me like this. Fools.”

Viola glanced up at the imp, tears beginning to gather in the corners of her eyes due to Charlotte’s unresponsive state.

There would be no talking their way out of this. That display of power just then was horrifyingly strong, and even if they worked together it almost felt like it would be hopeless if they tried. For a simple imp, his magic was potent. She couldn’t even rack her brain to think of ways to take him down other than the only way they knew.

His mask began to shake side to side again, the eyes of the mask glowing brightly, little tendrils of bright blue light seeping from the edges of the wood. At first Viola didn’t move (couldn’t find it in herself to step away from her sister when she was defenseless), not until a wave of magic began making a fast descent toward her, and without thinking she rolled out of the way backward, just barely missing what he’d thrown at her.

However, it had hit Charlotte much to her horror and she cursed herself for not thinking ahead of time.

A bright light enveloped her, enough to the point she couldn’t even see her anymore. Viola’s hands covered her mouth in horror, cursing herself for not fabricating a protective wall around them to prevent any more harm coming their way. She could only take choked, forced breaths, waiting to see just what exactly he had done to her. She cringed when Charlotte’s scream ripped through the air, as painful to listen to as it must have been for her to be struck once more on this night.

Seconds later, the light died down, and all that remained was…

Her eyes couldn’t have gotten any wider. _Gods_ in the heavens, what had he done to her?! Viola could barely contain her cry of panic, her own tears now streaming down her face. She was no longer even herself by first appearance. It was already evident that he’d set out to hurt them, but to do what he’d just done…

Charlotte was a Deku Scrub, not even half the size she’d been before and completely different. She looked weak and limp, and Viola feared what may happen if they couldn’t get out of there without having to stumble through and perhaps barely escape a fight with him.

The imp’s laughter pierced her ears once more, and her hands moved to shield them from the harmful noise. She couldn’t believe she was finding herself so scared of him. By first glance, he just looked harmless. But after everything, she couldn’t have been more wrong.

“Now that’s a great look for her! Wouldn’t you agree, as you are her darling sister?”

Viola clenched her teeth. No more. She couldn’t allow another second of this, but she didn’t need to provoke him if they were going to make it out of this alive. But if he did anything else, she’d have to do what she could to strike him down. Viola knew their chances were slim, and the thought sank into her with regret. If they could just somehow slip away from him and make it out of the area without being noticed somehow...

“Why don’t you two stay here for eternity, looking as pathetic as that? Besides, three more days and you won’t have to worry about much anymore. This world will finally be silenced at last...”

He began to float backwards, a door opening behind him, but Viola wasn’t going to have any of it. First the ocarina, then Sterling’s disappearance, and now he’d cruelly turned Charlotte into a Deku Scrub. It infuriated her. It was unforgivable, and she’d do everything she could so he could feel the consequences of his actions.

She rushed to her staff and snatched it off of the ground and began to make a break for it, determined to hold him down with all her strength and _make_ him change Charlotte back into her former self, but she was met with the brighter golden glowing of the two fairies hitting her repeatedly on the head, as annoying as that was. Viola tried to ignore it, but the door was almost closed.

“W-Wait, Tatl!”

The fairy stopped in her actions, then turned back to the door just as it closed. She yelped, high pitched and abrupt.

“No, Tael!”

She flew back over to the door, worriedly hovering in front of it for a few seconds (as if expecting it to open back up for her) before beginning to desperately pound on it with hopes that she wouldn’t be left behind, but to no avail, she was unfruitful. Viola knew a fairy couldn’t do much to her despite the fact one might have ran her off her horse earlier, but she was by herself and without the freaky kid to do any sort of magic for her. She was helpless. And Viola be damned if she expected her to do anything for her.

She was alone with two people who blatantly weren’t going to be her allies.

“Skull Kid! You can’t leave me! I-I’m here too, remember?”

She kept up her shouting, hopelessly calling out to whoever Tael was and the imp, but to no avail. She was alone, and upon recognizing that, the weight of it all instantly must have hit her. Viola almost wished she could feel bad for her. Her wings drooped, floating uselessly in front of the door until she was fired up once more, turning around onto Viola with newfound aggression.

“It’s because of you that I got left behind! Do me a favor and open the door!”

“You’re absolutely pitiful if you think I’m going to help you.” Viola spat, having no mercy for the so called Skull Kid’s accomplice. The fairy, though displeased, acknowledged the reality of her situation. She fumbled for a second, jittering around restlessly before she sighed loudly, discontent but also distressed. She acted like it was the most critical thing among everything else that happened that she find the other two immediately. It was almost laughable.

“L-Listen, I can make it worth your while! You want your stuff back, yeah? I have a pretty good idea of where Skull Kid might be going, s-so if you want my help then you’ll just have to help me!”

Viola didn’t even want to consider it. Getting her stuff back wasn’t even her priority anymore. Charlotte was a Deku Scrub, for crying out loud, and she was going to find a way to put her back to normal because she could almost guarantee that the Skull Kid wasn’t going to be the one to do it for them. It was hard to reverse a curse placed on someone by someone else, but Viola knew that soon she would be with Icarus and Zachary, who would be completely on board with helping them find a way.

Besides, though it was obvious the two fairies were never in agreement over this Skull Kid’s actions, they had every opportunity to tell him no, yet they had proceeded without much hesitation. They not only assisted in knocking the both of them off of their horses, but also in the theft, and they weren’t rushing him to stop him from doing what he did to Charlotte.

But, there’s always two sides of a story that Viola didn’t know. She had no real obligation to listen to the fairy’s plight after all that’s happened, but it would be something to rely on for now if they wanted a head start on getting Charlotte back to normal and maybe, if they were lucky, get their things that were stolen back. Perhaps a little persuading was all it would take to get the fairy to fess up on just about any question she had about the kid and why they were helping him in the first place.

What really mattered at the moment was getting Charlotte back on her feet and being sure she wasn’t severely hurt. She was completely out cold, and likely didn’t know what happened to herself yet, but Viola would reassure her that there would be a way to reverse this. With magic, there’s always a way, even if it was hard. Jeez, Icarus would be having a fit at the moment had they saw what just happened to her…

“Tael… I wonder if he’ll be okay on his own…” The fairy mumbled to herself, staring at the door with desperation. She turned back to Viola as she stepped back over to her sister, water sloshing beneath her feet from a semi shallow pool that gathered in front of the door the Skull Kid had ran off in. She didn’t know how to go about handling her.

“Charlotte…” Viola said quietly, grabbing her shoulder and shaking her gently. “Come on, you have to get up. We need to go after him... Charlotte. Are you listening to me?”

Thankfully, after a few seconds of the constant pestering, Charlotte seemed to stir. Her eyes didn’t open right away, but she was moving, and that was what mattered. Witches bodies were a lot more durable than the common body of a human, and she couldn’t have been more grateful for that. If a human were to have gone through a collision like that, the outcome wouldn’t have been pretty. She didn’t even want to imagine her having to go through that violent impact as a Deku Scrub. Viola still didn’t quite know what to tell her just yet, but perhaps she didn’t even need to talk at all.

“V...Viola?”

“Charlotte, come on. Can you stand?”

She finally lifted her head up and opened her eyes, blinking them a few times to get them to focus on Viola. She sighed with relief, letting go of her worries a little bit more at a time, and then threw Charlotte’s arm around her shoulders to help her to her feet, her free hand grabbing her staff to steady herself as she went.

“Charlotte… do you know what happened?” Viola asked cautiously, deciding to bite the bullet and get the conversation out of the way. Charlotte tilted her head at her, shaking it afterward.

“You seem… a lot taller than I remember, Viola… what happened?”

Viola just barely managed to get her forward before they came to the puddle of water again. The fairy was waiting impatiently, fluttering back and forth all the while only stopping to send sharp glares their way. The other fairy must be someone greatly important to her. In fact, Viola was almost sure she heard the other fairy - Tael, was it? - call this fairy ‘sis’ back in the deeper part of the woods.

Charlotte glanced down at her reflection. She didn’t seem to process it at first, staring at what stared back at her in the water like she didn’t even recognize herself (and hell she shouldn’t) but once the reflections movements copied hers, followed, it all settled in her at once. She didn’t even have it in her to scream like she had before, merely losing all strength she had in her body and falling to her knees in blatant horror with herself. Viola cringed, having long dried her tears, but unable to say anything to comfort her.

Charlotte began to rapidly shake her head, hands scratching at the surface of her new face, as if she could peel it off layer by layer and reveal who she had been before.

“Wh… What… What happened to me?!”

“Don’t freak out.” Viola said, finally after fumbling on the words. “Don’t. It’s okay. We’ll figure something out.”

“I’m a monster, Viola!”

“You’re not! Just… a Deku Scrub.”

“What would Icarus think of me right now?! Oh gods, I can’t let them see me…”

“Don’t say that! Icarus will love you no matter what. Besides, there’s definitely a way we can reverse it.”

Charlotte snapped her head toward her, narrowing her eyes.

“Oh? You know a way?”

Viola cowered slightly at the accusation.

“Well… not yet. But there has to be one!”

Charlotte seemed so despondent by then. She’d not only had her stuff rifled through and stolen, but her horse was gone (insinuated dead by the little devil), and now she had her current altered form to deal with.

Viola sighed.

“Don’t lose hope, Charlotte. We can figure something out for now. Can you walk?”

Charlotte didn’t respond. Instead she nodded, rising to her feet. She took a few steps forward, but having been so used to her former body she stumbled for a second. Viola waited, seeing if she would have to support her, but she seemed to get the handle of it well after a few more steps forward. Viola felt her shoulders droop. Even if they were able to find that Skull Kid again tonight, they were in no condition to have another face off with him. Much less Charlotte. Yet that blasted fairy was itching to meet up with her little friends again.

It meant that they could at least take some time. They could walk. Charlotte could sit on Nelly’s back to rest but it would not kill them to walk.

Besides, what was that Skull Kid talking about? Within three days time? The Carnival of Time?

Viola led Charlotte over to Nelly, shushing her grumbles of anger and gently helping Charlotte up. She took her reins by one hand and held her staff in the other and led her to the grand door, which by first appearance had no way of being opened by mundane means. No wonder the fairy couldn’t open it on her own.

Viola tapped the end of her staff on the ground, causing the door to shake in response, slowly lifting itself up as it had for the Skull Kid. The fairy began to follow them, quietly, as if having nothing to say to them until they were fully inside the odd and dark place. It must have been awkward to suddenly switch sides, from standing beside the person that was apparently as powerful as a god, to now standing beside the people who you helped attack and having to rely on them.

Inside of the door, it was as grassy and semi-wooded as it had been outside, but it seemed… enclosed, somehow. Like they were in a large room rather than in the outside, which was the odd thing about it since Viola couldn’t see any walls ahead.

“I’ll help you guys out… at least until we find Skull Kid.” The fairy said, floating in front of them now. Her words were cautious.

“My name is Tatl. I guess it’s nice to meet the both of you?”

Viola scoffed. She supposed she should have guessed she would turn herself back over to that kid when they found him, but, a deal was a deal. She seemed to know where he was headed and if she wanted to get there without difficulty, she’d have to partner up with them. Viola truly couldn’t hold the consequences of Charlotte’s alteration against her, but she could certainly hold a grudge for the assisted thievery. Viola disliked the idea, but she also found it strange that she would so easily be willing to bring them with her right to where he was.

Were the fairies on the side of the Skull Kid, or was something else going on?

“I’m Viola,” She pointed to herself, then over to her sister (who was currently not appearing to be so happy to sit on the horse). “And that’s Charlotte.”

She wasn’t sure why she’d introduced themselves. It could have been a habit after years of courtesy.

“...Well, now that that’s settled, let’s stop standing around. He couldn’t have gotten far by now.”

Viola chose not to say anything, but began moving once more.

The further they went inside, the more distant Charlotte seemed to become. She was hazy at first, but Viola caught her up very briefly on what she’d missed within those few minutes she was out with a quiet voice. The fairy had been there for it, after all. She seemed more displeased than anything, but entirely embarrassed that she’d let the Skull Kid get the best of her. Even though they’d never seen him before, he acted as if he knew all the little things that would get under the skin of either of the sisters. Antagonizing and talking down to Charlotte was one of the things she hated most, so of course it was an easy chance to provoke her into attacking.

Then her changing forms. Viola would have to admit, she’d never seen magic like that before. Whatever it was, it had to come from dark and no doubt evil natured origins. To simply change a person’s form from one thing to another within seconds sounded impossible, even with her level of skill and her sister’s combined.

One of Viola’s priorities, with getting their hands on that Skull Kid at the top, is to find a way to change Charlotte back to normal. Or at least, find out if it was possible. Until then, she would not believe in the idea that she was stuck like this for as long as she lived, no matter how much that kid liked to tease about it.

Coming through the thick of the wooded area, Viola could see a tunnel. Charlotte was sitting fully upright (albeit very quiet and every so often a tear would slip from her eye), and Tatl wasn’t saying a word. She didn’t trust how dark it was, but she braved on forward with the both of them.

“So, _Tatl_ , where exactly is this kid going?” Viola finally said as they were passing through the darkest part, and the fairy seemed to fumble for words.

“Uhm… all I know is that he said he was heading to Clock Town sometime ago. I don’t know what he wants there, but if you’ll just believe in me, I can figure it out! I have ways!”

Viola shook her head, but chose to bite her tongue instead and swallow some of the nastier things she could have said to that. It pissed her off for some reason. Viola couldn’t fully understand why she was letting her tag along with them.

Coming out the other side of the tunnel, it was only slightly brighter. Viola could almost sense that the morning was approaching. So much for sleeping in. It didn’t feel like even an hour had passed, but the very, very faint gleam in the now visible starless sky indicated that it was getting close for the sun to rise. She frowned at the thought. Why did that kid even pick them to mess with, anyway? Did they appear significant? She swore she could have seen him hesitate before decidedly going through with his original plan, even going as far as to comment on it.

The past, though it only happened not that long ago, was insignificant to dwell on. It may be hard to face facts but they had to accept what happened if they wanted to get through this.

Passing through the next path, it led directly to the back of an open door. It was hard to tell if it was left open on purpose or if perhaps _someone_ had forgotten to close it in his escape, but upon walking through it and listening to the distant noises of what resembled the ticking of a clock, it shut behind them with a loud _thud_. Glancing around, dim lights filled the area, but it was evident that they were inside of a building now. There was the creaking sounds of old turning wooden gears above them.

“What kind of a place is this…” Charlotte wondered aloud. Her tone sounded so sullen, but Viola was glad to hear her finally piping up with a comment. Besides, she was right to be curious. Why would a door from the outside lead to place like this?

“Is this a clock tower? Look at all these gears…”

“Do you think we’re in Clock Town by that case?”

Viola rolled her eyes. “A town is not going to be inside of a clock tower.”

Charlotte huffed. “That’s NOT what I meant! But the main attraction of the town besides the yearly carnival IS a clock tower, right?”

Tatl, annoyed with the bickering, turned away from them and flew forward more, impatiently bouncing in the air in order to get them to drop the conversation and move along. It was refreshing to get back into the swing of their bickering after that situation though, and it visibly seemed to relieve some tension in Charlotte. She was clinging onto the familiar to forget her current situation.

Viola sighed, then tugged gently on the reins once more to traverse further into the tower. She wasn’t sure if it was safe to bring a horse into a place like this, but just as long as nothing creaking above them was threatening to fall or any of the platforms beneath them were hinting at giving out, she would be fine.

“Do people go through here often?” Charlotte said. “That door had led us directly here, and there wasn’t really anywhere else to go.”

“It’s weird. It doesn’t look like we’re going to be going anywhere else other than where we’re able to at the moment.”

Everything apart from the path they were taking was tightly sealed off, not allowing anyone to explore the rest of the tower. Viola found it odd, but chose not to question it. Besides, what would anyone want at the top of a clock tower? Though she has a vague memory of reading something about the top of the clock tower in Clock Town on the night of the carnival...

Just as they were turning the corner, spotting a rather large pair of double doors that would hopefully lead them outside, the three of them were halted when a rather eerie but somehow cheerful voice called out to them.

“You’ve met with a terrible fate, haven’t you?”

Turning themselves around (Charlotte finally hopped off the horse, insisting she felt well enough to do so after steadying herself on the ground with her staff, which was way too large for her to carry now) a man with a large backpack was staring at them from the corner of the room. Something struck Viola about the man as alarming, despite how friendly and harmless his appearance was. If previous encounters with the Skull Kid were uncanny, then may the Gods forbid the terrible things that were popping up in her mind at first glance of the ominous man.

Tatl however was alarmed, and quickly flew behind Viola in order to hide. She raised an eyebrow at the odd behavior, but her focus was on the man in front of them.

“Who are you?” Charlotte nearly growled out, clenching her fists out of reflex. She was never that friendly to strangers, especially ones who acted as cryptic as him and snuck up on them. Plus, she wasn’t in the greatest mood now that she knew what had happened to her.

His smile never wavered.

“I own the Happy Mask Shop. I travel quite often in order to find masks…”

The start of his plight hadn’t even answered the question Charlotte had asked, but no one interjected to call him out on it.

“As I was traveling recently, I had an important mask stolen from me by an imp in those woods. I’ve been at a loss, but, it seems I’ve found you two.”

Viola calmly stepped back to be at the side of her horse. She didn’t like him so much, but he hadn’t posed a threat yet. Coming out of nowhere like that and calling out to them like he knew them. The good thing was it was blatant that he knew who’d stolen his mask so thankfully he shouldn’t have accusations of thievery up his sleeves directed at them. She didn’t want to relive another Cedric situation, because that mess was as awful as something could get.

She should knock on wood after that thought.

“So you’ve found us, but what does that have to do about your mask?” Viola said, blunt, not interested in making friendly conversation.

The man sighed, but strangely, his smile stuck in place.

“Don’t think of me as rude, but I have been following the both of you…”

Viola’s skin crawled at the thought. All this time, had it been his eyes on her back then the eyes of that kid? She saw Charlotte’s expression grow darker at the words. She was going to shove it in her face later that she was right to be creeped out, but Viola would take the mockery with pride. Charlotte had been right all along after all.

“I know of a way to help you both with your current problems. If you can get back the _darling thing_ that was stolen from you, I can assist in the return of putting you back to normal.”

Their hopes had risen on both of their faces. Before either of them could say anything, he continued after a moment’s pause, his gaze lingering on Charlotte. Viola had to think about what he meant when he said darling thing. Could he have meant the ocarina?

“In exchange… I only ask that you retrieve my mask that the imp has stolen from me.”

It was an unexpected proposition. He hadn’t properly introduced himself, but he presumed that they would be willing to help him? It was arrogant, no matter how much he layered on the friendly outward personality. He was offering them a way out of their situation, like he’d seen it for himself and didn’t bother to step in to stop it.

For some reason, she felt like the salesman didn’t need an explanation to already know.

He put a hand under his chin and scratched it, bemused by their inability to respond.

“What? Is this a difficult task? I see no real challenges here. If you work together, it should be simple.”

He clasped his hands together in front of him. The lack of lighting in the area cast an minacious light over his face, nearly concealing him in the shadows. He appeared to be more comfortable that way, able to slip out of view at any second he wanted.

“But I suppose there’s another _troublesome_ matter. I am a very busy man, and so I must leave in three days time. I would be in your debt and so very grateful if you could bring it back before I must leave.”

Viola scoffed, shaking her head, the dismissive action visibly disappointing the salesman. She brushed some of her hair that had fallen into her face with the irritated movement, not willing to look at him straight on anymore. Tatl didn’t seem keen on contributing to the conversation. If the salesman noticed her, he didn’t comment on it, but Tatl was focused on staying as far away from his line of sight as possible. The salesman specialized in masks, and the stolen mask had to belong to the one that Skull Kid was wearing, and if the two fairies had helped him in the thievery of Viola and Charlotte, they’d likely done it to other people before.

Tatl feared consequences apparently.

“Ah, but yes. I know you both will be fine. You’re young and powerful. You should be able to find it right away.”

“Hold on.” Charlotte interjected, throwing her hand up into the air sharply. Though it seemed even a gesture like that wouldn’t have thwarted his ramblings, he closed his mouth and let her talk.

“We haven’t even _said_ anything yet. So you’ll help us _only_ if we get your mask back. You’d rather leave me like this if we can’t, and we’re just supposed to agree with this? In the end, what’s the real benefit for us?”

The Skull Kid had proven himself to be dangerous. Getting mixed up in what was going on with him could prove to be fatal, given first glance at his display of powers. He so easily deterred Charlotte from her attack, struck her down, changed her form, and made her so lost in her despair. The simple sight of that entire situation had shaken Viola up. Anything more than that and something bad could have happened. They didn’t even know how reliable his help would be if they decided to take it. It could be a case that he’d take his mask and then run off without a second thought, which would be the most realistic case scenario. If he can’t even get back his stolen mask himself, what else could he do to rectify this situation for them?

No doubt, he was mysterious. He hadn’t been in here when they first walked in. He couldn’t have been. No one that was following them could have ended up in front of them on such a narrow path. There was a certain unseen power looming over him, and perhaps within him too. From the way he stood, though it was innocent and pleading, there was a lot more going on with him then at first glance. Because of that, it was almost compelling to listen to his arrangement. Besides, it wouldn’t hurt to get that mask off and away from the Skull Kid if this is what he was going to do with it.

If it was to be believed that the mask was the one giving him that power anyway.

“I know it’s a rather cruel deal that I offer, but unfortunately they must be arranged in order for things to proceed to our liking. I see no issue with what I stand by. I get my mask back, and your situation is resolved.”

His shoulders hunched, and with the weight of that backpack, Viola almost feared he might topple over with the movement. His tone was pleading, every little word he said hung onto hope that they would do his bidding.

“I beg of you to do this for me. I really do promise that I can help your sister if you do it.”

Viola still had no idea what that meant (he was so ill-defined about how he would be able to do it), but she made up her mind. If he hadn’t spoke in such vague terms and say sinister things every other thing he spoke of, she might have given into his will from the beginning of this conversation. He hadn’t proved his benevolence to them, but he was willing to make a promise, so if he weren’t to live up to his end of the bargain, Viola would make sure they would find a way that he never see that mask again.

“Fine.”

Charlotte looked her way, eyes wide and shocked. Viola closed her eyes. She knew she should have discussed it with her first, but there was no time it seemed. Three days would go by faster than someone would anticipate. Besides, Charlotte didn’t _have_ to help her if she didn’t want to. But she would have to if she wanted to be returned to normal.

“What?! Viola, you can’t be serious - “

“We have no idea what’s even going on right now, Charlotte. But he said he can help you. Let’s just try to get the mask, okay?”

Tatl cautiously floated out just barely behind of Viola, then spoke quietly. She was avoiding the salesman still.

“She’s right, you know. It’s important that we get the mask back.”

Charlotte went quiet, then turned her head away, wobbling on her unsteady feet, her staff barely managing to keep her upright. Viola waited for her to tell her what she wanted to do, but to her surprise she grumbled out a confirmation that she’d go along with it for now. Viola knew it was an impulsive decision, but they had to try whatever they could. She could feel an omen brewing over them as they spoke, telling her of terrible things to come if they didn’t take what options they had now. The more they hesitated, the more time they wasted.

“Truly, I am thankful! Thank you, thank you, thank you!”

If it weren’t for his large backpack, Viola would guarantee he’d be jumping with glee. He instead clapped his hands together once and let the joy sprawl across his expression, his smile intensifying.

“We’ll hopefully be back soon.” Viola called out as she turned on her heel, Nelly’s reins in her hands. Charlotte followed slowly, but not before giving the salesman one long lasting suspicious glance before running out the door with her.

Upon stepping out into the outside area, they both were displeased to find that morning had come. Time felt like it flowed oddly here, as if it were sped up and impossible to keep track with. Viola let her shoulders drop and she buried her face into Nelly’s silky mane briefly. Nelly was in need of rest, so first thing was first they’d have to find somewhere to safely allow that to happen while they ran around town to gather information. If the Skull Kid was here, then he’d have surely made that appearance known. If they could get the mask back before the carnival, that would be even better.

Charlotte couldn’t have groaned louder, drawing the attention of some nearby locals, who whispered something about _Deku Scrub_ and _why_ before quickly moving along upon being met with her sharp glare. Tatl finally fully floated in front of them, having been put more at ease now that they were away from the man inside. She still kept her voice down, as if fearing he would still be able to hear her.

“That guy is so creepy! He’s the one who…”

She cut herself off before she could go further, receiving suspicious looks from the twins. She fluttered nervously for a second, as if trying to gather what to say to cover for the loss of words.

“Sorry, I was just thinking too much at once. But, anyway! Three days only! Even if we never sleep, we’ll only have so much time! That’s burdensome…”

Tatl, now back on track, steadied herself and focused on the current situation. From here, she was going to be the one to lead them. She did say she may know how to locate Skull Kid, so for now the two of them would have no choice but to run around and do what she said.

“We don’t need to be standing here anymore. We need to go see the Great Fairy!”

Charlotte stepped away from Nelly, putting one hand on her hip and leaning forward to glare at the fairy.

“What’s a person like that have to do with any of this?”

Viola nodded in agreement with her sister. Tatl growled in annoyance, having no patience to deal with any questioning from either of them.

“You want to find the Skull Kid, right? The Great Fairy always watches over everything. She’ll have to know what he’s up to. And keep it between us, but someone like Skull Kid is _no match_ for the Great Fairy.”

If that were true, then this would be over quicker than any of them were estimating. Surely someone like the Great Fairy would be able to put the kid in his place, get their stuff back, and the mask on top of it. Maybe they didn’t even need that mask salesman after all and the Great Fairy would go a step further to put Charlotte back to normal. Viola shrugged. It wouldn’t hurt to give her a try.

“Fine. Where do we find her?”

“The shrine near the North Gate! If we go now, we’ll have plenty of time left.”

Viola shook her head.

“We need to find someone to take care of Nelly first. She’s been up for way too long now.”

Tatl, though disgruntled she would have to wait a little longer to reach their goal, accepted the fact she wouldn’t be getting much of anywhere without the twins to accompany her. Obviously displeased, she began to follow them more out into the open, passing through the locals and trying to determine where they could go that would be reliable enough to leave Nelly for the time being.

The town was nice at first glance. The people were out and active with bundles of things in their arms, and shop keepers were beckoning them in to their doors with friendly smiles and compelling talk of good deals and quality merchandise. It vaguely reminded Viola of what Hollow looked like during its very early mornings when she opened shop, but Clock Town was much bigger than Hollow just estimating by first glance (they’d have to find out where the town center was so they could meet up with Icarus and Zachary and catch them up on the situation). It wasn’t crowded just yet, so if they were fast, they might be able to get Nelly somewhere quick and find the Great Fairy all before noon.

Oddly enough, the townspeople ever so often stopped to look up at the sky, hesitating to keep moving until seconds later. Viola didn’t quite take notice of it at first. That was not until Charlotte finally looked up to investigate what was so interesting, and gasped loudly seconds later.

“ _Gods_ in the _heavens…_ is that the moon?!”

Viola was quick to follow her sister’s gaze upward, trying to locate what was scaring her so much when -

Viola’s heart dropped, and her eyes went wide with shock.

The moon was absurdly gigantic within the sky, enough that it made Viola’s stomach do a flip when she saw its proximity. And its face was so grotesque that took anyone’s breath away when they had a mere glance at it. The townspeople had definitely noticed as well, stopping to gaze at it in horror before hurriedly talking to their friends about their concern.

Viola would almost bet that with how close it was and how it just ever so slightly barely seemed to be getting closer with every passing second that it would crash into the earth in about three days time.

She suddenly understood their situation fully.

**Author's Note:**

> gfasfjas;dfj;alsjflsngvl'awgo'ihngr expect more drabbles fuckers cant stop me


End file.
